


Close Encounters of a Royal Kind

by SharkieBubblesDearr



Category: Final Fantasy XV
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-06-17
Updated: 2017-06-18
Packaged: 2018-11-14 20:10:46
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 3,615
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11215422
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SharkieBubblesDearr/pseuds/SharkieBubblesDearr
Summary: This is just a series of drabbles that allow you to insert your self into the Final Fantasy XV situation.





	1. Rescues

                  You are a rookie hunter, working our the Medacio HQ. Truth be told you don't really count as a hunter, you take on small baddies and day work when you are running low on funds from your normal job as a courier. This time you had picked up several smaller missions, that happened to line with your free. Time you were working hard towards that trip you wanted to take to Lestallum. You were so close, and you had just completed the last of your missions. You were set to head back to the headquarters to get your funds when you heard fighting over the other side of the rock structure you were near. Your eyes went wide, you have never seen that many MTS in your entire life, and at the center were several men that looked to be hitting their relative limits. You weighed your options, and steadied yourself as you brought your sword down through the shoulder of one of the MT soldiers. With a loud yell. This was enough of a break for the men to finally catch their breath as the MTs turned your way. You helped them clean the scene. You gave them a nod.  
                "Thank you for your help." A slender man with glasses, approached, cleaning them with a rag, before adjusting them to his face once more, "We are very grateful."  
                "No problem. If I was being swarmed and someone found me, I hope they would do the same for me." You shrugged with a smile. The largest man of the group clapped a hand down on your shoulder.   
                "Good moves our there, you a hunter?" He questioned, you had to look up at him.   
                "No. Not officially. Just doing little jobs." You admitted, you were about to play up your exploits to these guys. It didn't take you long to see the common threads. That being the dark attire they all wore. It triggered a memory in you. One that you only barely remembered from your time in Insomnia. 'Could these guys really be Crownsguard?' You questioned yourself, not them.   
                 " You looked like a nature, you sure you aren't a hunter?" The blonde man of the group squinted at your curiously, you spotted the camera in his hands, and smiled. He got the gesture and snapped the moment. 

                 "Hey Ignis." The last of the group called from a rock where he was seated, clearly exhausted from the battle. 

                 The man with glasses turned, you made a mental note of his name. "Yes?" 

                 " Think you guys can just get the car, and pick me up here?" You held in a laugh, that was a rather lazy comment. 

                 "Not a chance, Noct." Ignis reported, as Noct groaned, sitting up from his spot of the rock, Ignis cleared his through a little, "Aren't you going to thank, the person that helped us?" 

                 "Thanks." Noct yawned.   
                 "Your welcome." You shrugged again. "Stay safe out here." You were ready to let the men get back on their way, and the setting sun was enough to make you sweat, you were not a nighttime person. Not many were unless they were seasoned hunter veterans, or had a death wish. 

                  "See you around." The blonde waved to you as you started back towards you campsite, and then hopefully your car. 

                   You were on the road for an hour before you came to the realization that your campsite was in another direction entirely, when you had helped the others you had lost your location. You swore under your breath was the sun started to blink out of the sky as you tried to run past the rock structures back to safety. Your path was blocked, as a large hand reached out of the ground with a large growl. You fell flat on your ass, and crawled backward as the Iron Giant formed in full. In a moment you had curled yourself into a crevice to avoid the Giant's gaze, but the darkness was its home. And you were in no luck you heard it scrap its blade against the stones above you. It sharpened its blade preparing to cut the formation directly were you were. You called out, it was all you could do, as you lunged form your hiding spot and under the Giant's legs. 

                 "Help!" You did you best to avoid the Giant staying close to its legs, and trying your best to avoid it. "PLEASE, HELP!" The fear was clear, the panic was true. You tried to make a break for it, but the Giant wanted your life. The shockwave of its blade, sent your flipping through the air. And you landed hard on your ankle, you felt it instantly, it was a fire in your joint, you tried to put weight on it and you eyes watered, and cried out. There was no way to deny that your ankle in one move had been broken. You looked back over your shoulder at this lumbering Giant as it came closer, it blade ready. It was certainly your doom, would have been. If there hadn't be a familar voice, that called out, at the monster. 

                "Over here, ugly!" The blonde from before was on top of the rock formation, distracting the creature, as it turned to him, you felt yourself being lifted. 

                 "Can you walk?" It was Ignis, he looked down at your ankle and frowned, you couldn't see well from the blur of the tears in your eyes, but you assumed that he swelling must have been apparent. 

                 "We have time for that." Gladio scooped you up from the ground in his arms, and whistled signalling to the other two to leg it.    
                  With there help you managed to make it to the safety of their campsite. "Thank you." 

                  Noct was the first to speak this time, even though he was laying down, "Consider it paying you back from earlier." 

                 You nodded, and then winced as the blonde helped Ignis with setting your ankle, it was a temporary fix. The plan was to take you to Hammerhead in the morning, get your car for you. And then be off to Galdin Quay. In the time you spent with them you learned the names of the other two of the group the large guy, was Gladio, and the blonde, was Prompto. You were thankful to them when they dropped you off. But less so when they left you with a sudden debt to Cid and Cindy. Your vacation was going to end up being a little longer to wait, not that your ankle disagreed. 


	2. Lestallum or Bust

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After your Ankle healed and your had recovered the funds you were finally able to head up to Lestallum for that vacation you wanted in the city. This was the plan, and it would have worked well, if you had actually bothered to have the people at Hammerhead give your car a check-up.

                    Here, you were all packed into a suitcase on the road, ready for a good time. Only to have the parade rained on, your car had lurched to a dead halt, and when you went to look under you hood you were nearly suffocated by a dark angry smoke. You let the car air out, and you even waited to see it was just a matter of overheating, but there was zero luck. Your car was dead. You looked at your phone considering your options, call home to your family for a rescue, call Hammerhead, call your new friends to see where they were at, and rely on the kindness of strangers and try to hitchhike it. You tried your others options first. The idea of riding with a stranger didn't sit entirely well with you. 

                    When you called home you were greeted with a recorded message, 'Sorry to miss you, on a vacation in Galdin Quay. Will be back in a week.' You felt the groan bubble up from your gut. You pressed your forehead to the steering wheel, not hard enough for the horn to blow. Next, was to call Hammerhead. 

                    "Hello Hammerhead Garage, Cindy speaking." You were thankful that it was her that picked up the line and not Cid.   
                    "Hey Cindy."    
                   She recognized your voice,"Oh, hey there! Didn't expect to hear from you again so soon. What can I do for ya?" Cindy still sounded like she was hard at work. 

                    "Well...my car died." You waited a moment before she replied. 

                    "Where did you breakdown?" She was instantly concerned, "You alright?"   
                    "Yeah, I am okay. And give me one moment, "You pulled out a map to look at to see where you were exactly, "I am roughly right between Hammerhead and Lestallum." You heard her thinking, "Well, I hate to be the barer of bad news sugar cube, but I wouldn't be able to get a tow truck or myself out there, before the nightfall." You honestly figured as much, she heard you sigh.   
                      "You should try to find somewhere to stay and wait, do you want me to see if I can get out there?" She questioned.   
                       "No, no thank you Cindy. I will think of something. I will call you back once I get myself situated."   
                      "Thank you, I would hate to find out anything went and happened to you after all the time you spent nursing that busted ankle. I know you are really looking forward to this trip."   
                      "Talk to you later Cindy." 

                      "Don't forget to call back." She hung up her end first.   
                      Your options were running slim, but at least it was midday giving you at least six good hours to get things sorted out in. You tried to call your new friends, but they all seemed to be unavailable until you tried to text them. The response was a picture mail from Prompto, of them in a dungeon, 'Dungeon Crawling, bad signal.' You sighed. It was too much to hope that they would be able to rescue to a second time. Not like their car would had much room for you anyway. There was only one option left. You lugged your bag out of the car, and locked it up. 

                       "I will be back for you." You wandered up the road a little bit before finding what you thought was the ideal spot for trying your hand at hitchhiking. You were at it for two hours, and not a single person had even passed, this is what you got for taking a road that was older. You were sitting on your suitcase, looking at your phone when you saw a car pull in front of you. 

                       "Excuse me, do you need assistance?" You looked up, at the man in the car. 

                        You nodded, you looked up and down the road, how had he been so quiet. " Yeah, my car broke down, and I can't get a hold of anyone to help."   
                       "Poor thing, where are you headed?" You could already feel the air chilling, and it wasn't from the setting of the sun. This man had a presence. 

                        "Lestallum." You saw the man crack a smile, and park the car, before making his way over to you. 

                       "What a coincidence." He took your bag for you, "I am headed to exact same place." He wasn't giving you and option to say no. As he put your bag in the trunk of his car.              

                       "Are you sure?" You tested.   
                       "Why of course, why wouldn't I help a person in distress.  Especially this close to nightfall." As if on cue the daylight faded more, "Besides, car rides are always..." he took a moment to consider his words with care, "more fun with a companion." He opened the passenger door for you.   
                        You didn't have any options, even if this man made everyone of your red flags go off, he now had your belongings locked in the back of his car, and you weren't about to get that far on your ankle, even after its healing.   
                        You got in the car, and he closed the door behind you. He wandered over to the driver side and got back in, "Let me introduce myself, my name is Ardyn." 


	3. The Ride to Lestallum

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In the last installment, you had finally been rescued from your broken down car. But now you were at the mercy of the strange man that had picked you up. Now, you have to use your head and make it through the ride.

                               You were thankful, that the first ten minutes or so were full of silence, but not the comfortable sort that comes from leisurely activities. This was an uncomfortable silence, it was tense, you felt your hair standing on end. You tried to look over at the man driving without him seeing you do so. You wanted to get a better look at him. You couldn't make heads or tails about his sense of style, he had a bit of cut out material there, some pattern there, heavy leather there, thin flowing bit there, it looked like he just made a collection of the items he felt were worthy enough to be on his body. It was a worthless hope that he wouldn't catch your side eye, it was clear that he did from the smirk that made it way on to his features. In a futile attempt to play it cool you looked at the world to your right.   
                             "So what are you doing in Lestallum?" His voice made your skin crawl, you could tell if that was good or bad thing. 

                             "Taking a vacation." An opportunity presented itself, " What are you going to be doing in Lestallum?"   
                             "Oh, I am just catching up with some friends." 'This man has friends? Doesn't sound like people I want to meet. ' This was the start of a ping pong game of questioned. You had unknowingly opened Pandora's box. The man was simultaneously chatty and not very giving of information. This went on for at least an hour, you tried to keep it topical. You didn't want to bring up family, or how much money was in your pocket, anything that would make you seem more interesting and worth hanging around with. You were thankful for the ride though. At least it seemed like the drive was much faster than you remembered it. Or perhaps he was speeding, you didn't want to check the speedometer. 

                              "Seems that you are nursing an injury." His finally got to that topic, it was like he honed in on your healing ankle.   
                              "Yeah. I uh, had a run in with an Iron Giant." It was the truth, he seemed impressed for a moment. 

                              "And you walk away with only a broken ankle?" He wasn't buying that you allow had managed the task, "Now, I don't think that is fully accurate." 

                              Anxiously you rubbed the back of your neck, "Yeah, I got rescued." 

                               "Oh?" He was genuinely interested again, "Who by?"   
                              "Just some guys, I had helped them earlier that day with something, and they returned the favor when they saw I was in trouble." It was the basic truth, but the man didn't seem to be content with the information as it was. 

                                "Come now, what are their names? Maybe I will have the pleasure of running into them myself. I can thank them for saving my travel buddy." 

                                You were quiet for a moment and noticed that he started to slow the car the longer you went without replying to him. 'Shit.' You didn't have much of a choice, you were at his mercy. 

                                 "There were four of them, one went by, " you had to think quickly which one seemed like they had the lowest profile, "Noct."   
                                "What a coincidence indeed, then." There was a delight in his voice, "He is one of the people I am hoping to meet up with once I have made it to Lestallum."                                  It was in that moment it hit you, "How do you know they are going to Lestallum?" You didn't have time to think about that before it came out. All you could see if that smirk, become all the more apparent as you sat in the passenger seat.

                                "Call it a hunch." You didn't had time to question as you looked around at the surrounding you were already at the tunnel outside of Lestallum. How had you made it there that quick. You had made this journey before and you swore it took longer than this. You didn't question him about it.   
                                 "Seems our time together is coming to an end." You weren't sure it that was honest disappointment or not, "Oh well, I am sure that our paths will cross again." He pulled into a parking spot, and went around to your side the car opening the door for you.   
                                 "Thank you again for the ride."   
                                  "Think nothing of it. Enjoy your time in Lestallum." He took your bag from his trunk, you watched him wander over to the overlook of the city, and you took that moment to practically run to the hotel that you called and made your arrangements with. 'Glad that is over.' You weren't paying attention as you collided with someone.   
                                 
                                 


	4. Lestallum Market Meeting

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After that ride to Lestallum you were ready to relax and enjoy the city.

                                    "Sorry." It wasn't the first time you ended up flat on your ass, and certainly wasn't the last. 

                                    "Where's the fire?" The voice was instantly recognizable, it belonged to Gladio.   
                                    " Do strange red heads count as fire?" You were half joking, but there was a look that passed between the guys. It was clear, something was going on. 

                                    "Was he wearing a lot of black?" Ignis questioned softly, keeping an eye on Prompto and Noct, who were taking a photo nearby, but just out of ear shot.  

                                    You nodded. "Last I saw him, he was down near the overlook." You didn't mind telling them what you knew, certainly more trustworthy a group than that man you had been stuck with was. "I am glad to get away from him, but also relieved otherwise I would have been stuck on the side of the road. Thought you guys were dungeon crawling." 

                                     Ignis looked at you curiously, "That was the other day, we had found a dungeon but there wasn't much we could do with it." You looked at your phone, and checked the time it sent and was received. You frowned. 

                                     "Seems you should change your cell service." Ignis attempted to comfort lightly, as Noct and Prompto walked over to join them. You nodded quietly in agreement, 'So they could have saved me.' Even if that was the truth, you could swear in that moment that the message said it was sent that day. You couldn't put your finger on it but you were sure that the discrepancy of time happened not by chance.   

                                     " Well, I will see you around. I am going to get myself checked in." You dismissed yourself to let them get on their way. The hotel you were staying at turned out to be the same one that guys had just left, and they needed time to set up your room. The front desk took your bag for the time being so you could do explore Lestallum as you wished. The first place you wanted to visit was the Market, it was a pretty impressive set up, instead of more tall buildings it was essentially a full courtyard of different merchants, selling everything from accessories to rare food items. You spent hours browsing before you finally settled down somewhere to eat. This was when you were approached by a young lady with dark hair.   
                                      "Can I sit with you?" Being polite, you gesture to the chair that was also at the table. 

                                      "Go ahead." In truth you appreciated how vastly different she was from the man that you had rode into town with. 

                                       "My name is Iris." She introduced herself and asked, "Are you enjoying Lestallum?"   
                                       "So far, so good. I don't think I have been anywhere recently that has this many food options." You laughed lightly, and she echoed your delight.   
                                      The waiter came over and got her order, and you two shared a very pleasant little evening together while chatting about absolutely nothing of importance, covering topics from do monsters see in color to whether or not seafood was better than steak when it came to being classy.  

                                       As the day drew to a close you and Iris, decided to take a walk together, it had been a while since you had made a genuine connection, even with the guys it wasn't the same as a one on one with someone. You two had hooked arms and started exploring Lestallum at night, the women from the power plant were all finally off too. So it was starting to get crowded in the market eateries.  

                                      She showed you the sights, it was clear she had explored a little since her own coming to Lestallum, the evening was shaping up to be pretty much wonderful. This was before you turned into a rather dark alley and started hearing things behind you. You urged Iris to move a little faster, and the thing behind you two quickened its own pace. Before you long you two sprinted into a dead end, full of trash. Leaving nowhere to go except to turn back the way that you had come. Towards the sounds that had made you both, scared. You took a deep breath and picked up a trashed pipe from the trash nearby and had Iris get behind you. This wasn't about showing off, this was about keeping your new friend safe. You turned the corner and swung, only to have the pipe caught by Gladio.   
                                      "Good swing, might be hope for you yet rookie." He smiled, and Iris came out from behind you, "Gladdy!"   
                                      " Just who I was looking for." Gladio looked relieved.   
                                      "Thought you guys were looking for the weird red head. " You questioned and it soured Gladio's smile.   
                                      "Oh we found him alright, decided we aren't following that guy anywhere after dark, and we told him that much. He is "helping" us get down to the Titan tomorrow. But, you don't have to worry about that. Let's get you two both back to the civilization part of the city before something really does find you both in the dark. 


End file.
